On 7 November 1971 the first Boeing 747 landed at the airport, the Boeing 747-200B was operated by Condor was carrying German tourists from Frankfurt. In the early 1990s the position of the airport's runway (04/22) was shifted northward and the old runway was made into a taxiway for departing and arriving aircraft. Airport expansion projects have recently been undertaken at the airport under the Stage 1, Phase II Expansion Project. A pier with eight aero-bridges opened in November 2005. A new terminal with an additional eight gates are proposed to be built under Stage II of the Phase II Expansion Project. Construction of the new Stage II, Phase II Expansion Project is expected to commence in September/October 2017 and is expected to be completed by 2020 .[2]

On 7 May 2007 the Sri Lankan Government decided to shift some military aviation operations out of the space adjoining the airport to SLAF Hingurakgoda, thus paving the way for more civilian operations. As part of the airport development program, a passenger train service was launched between the Airport and Colombo Secretariat Station, in June 2010. They also unveiled plans to extend the Colombo-Katunayake airport express train to Ratmalana International Airport.[2] The airport is used by Emirates as an alternative emergency airport for its Airbus A380 aircraft.[2][3] In 9 January 2012, an Airbus A380-800 operated by Emirates flight EK 413 from Sydney landed at Bandaranaike International Airport. This was the first time in history that an Airbus A380 had landed in a Sri Lankan airport. EK 413 had taken-off from Sydney en route to Dubai, but needed a refueling stop. Originally planned to refuel at Singapore, it was decided to land in Colombo instead. The exact cause as to why the A380 needed to refuel is not known.[4]

Bandaranaike International Airport is equipped with 18 double jetway gates in preparation for airlines introducing the Airbus A380.

SriLankan Airlines is the largest airline operating at the airport, with a fleet of 20 Airbus aircraft based at Colombo and providing scheduled services to Europe, Middle East, India, South East Asia and the Far East.

Bandaranaike International Airport (airport code CMB) at Katunayake, Sri Lanka, is 30 kilometers north of the island nation's capital of Colombo. Thirty airlines currently serve the airport's over 8.5 million annual passengers.[citation needed]. The airport has three passenger terminals. Terminal 1 is the current international terminal, built in 1967, Terminal 2 is the new international terminal, which is expected to be completed in 2017, and Terminal 3 is the new domestic terminal, which opened in November 2012. The airport's new Silk Route lounge recently opened, expediting the customs process for Commercially Important Passengers.

Terminal 1 opened in 1967 and is the oldest and largest terminal in the airport. It has 12 gates. The arrival and departure areas are separated horizontally. All international flights currently use this terminal, until Terminal 2 opens in 2020. The terminal consists of a main terminal building directly connected to one concourse which houses all the gates. Once past security, passengers proceed through the long, arm-shaped concourse housing gates 6-14. On the upper level of this concourse, there are two lounges. In the main body of the terminal is SriLankan Airlines' "Serendib Lounge", and the Palm Spirit lounge. This area has duty-free shops, a tea shop, a cafeteria, a smoking lounge, and day-rooms & showers.

Terminal 2 is planned to open in 2020. It is planned to have 8 gates, with arrival and departure areas separated vertically. A new terminal with eight more gates is proposed to be built under Stage II of the Phase II Expansion Project. Construction of the new Stage II, Phase II Expansion Project was commenced on 7 September 2014 and is expected to be completed in 2020. A new pier with eight boarding gates and 14 passenger boarding bridges, with a dedicated gate comprising two passenger boarding bridges for the Airbus A380, will be included in the proposed new development.

Terminal 3 opened in November 2012 and handles all domestic flights. Its arrival and departure areas that are separated horizontally.[citation needed]

The Cargo Terminal opened in October 2009 and handles all cargo flights. Its arrival and departure areas are separated horizontally.

Apron Charlie: It has 8 parking bays, all of them are currently remote bays. It can handle any 8 wide-body such as an Airbus A330, Airbus A340, Boeing 777 or Boeing 747 at once. The remote bays will be converted into 8 Airbus A380 capable boarding bridges under the Stage II development project. It is the only apron that is currently capable handling the Airbus A380-800. It has been used by Emirates Airbus A380s thrice.

The Bandaranaike International Airport has a single runway (04/22), with an asphalt surface. The take-off and landing distances are 3,441 m and 3,350 m respectively.[citation needed] In addition, the government has decided to invest on a second runway at the airport, enabling the A380 to land in Colombo. There is also a plan to build another taxiway to handle the A380 in the future. In addition, Phase II of the BIA expansion project is to have a second runway, also able to accommodate the A380, with another taxiway to the second runway.

The main runway will be closed from 6 January 2017 to 7 April 2017 between 8.30 AM to 4.30 PM. Airlines had already been informed to re-schedule flights, About 185 flights operate from the airport each day. The runway will be re-built in sections for four hours each day, with another four hours given for the material to harden.The dates and hours of closure were decided in consultation with airline operators, said the CAA. This is the first time overlaying work is being carried out on the airport’s runway since it completed construction in 1986.

The airport is undergoing resurfacing of its runway. Future projects may include a second runway to support the Airbus A380, a further eight passenger gates, a domestic terminal, a five-storey car-park, and a five-star hotel neighbouring the airport. Construction of the new approach channels to the airport will begin in September/October 2017, and expected to be completed by 2020 .[5]

A new split-level passenger terminal building, which separates arrivals and departures vertically, a new pier with eight boarding gates, and 14 passenger boarding bridges, with a dedicated gate comprising two passenger boarding bridges for the new Airbus A380, will be included in the proposed new complex. There would also be a remote apron and an additional nine parking stands to ease air traffic movement. There would be a tax-free apparel shopping mall at the Katunayake BOI Zone to attract more business visitors to Sri Lanka. The mall is to be adjacent to the arrival terminal and connected by a sky bridge.

The second stage will involve the acquisition of 600 hectares of public land, the construction of a runway capable of accommodating new-generation airplanes, an aircraft repair and maintenance center, an arrival and a departure terminal, a shopping arcade, a cargo complex connected to the airport by rail and a multistory car park. Under the Development Project Phase II, Stage 2, a second passenger terminal and a required utility for second terminal will be constructed. Work will also be carried out to expand the terminal, aircraft parking apron, and public utilities. The existing airport terminal will be converted to a domestic and regional terminal, when the new complex is ready. A two tier passenger terminal with arrivals and departures physically separated as found in most modern airports will also be constructed. A rapid exit to the Colombo - Katunayake Highway will be provided directly from the terminal. Stage 2 itself is to be implemented in two stages and the first stage is scheduled to be completed by 2020.

E03 Colombo – Katunayake Expressway is a new high-speed road linking the airport to Colombo, with a travel time of around 20 minutes. The airport taxi service operates a counter in the arrival Lobby with a fleet over 600 vehicles.

In 1956 with the departure of the RAF from RAF Negombo, the Royal Ceylon Air Force took over and renamed the station RCyAF Katunayake. With the construction of the Bandaranaike International Airport, major portion of the air base was taken over. However the Sri Lanka Air Force remained and expanded its air base adjoining the International Airport. At present it is the largest SLAF station in the country and is the airfield for several flying squadrons as well as ground units. The SL Air Force Hospital is also based at SLAF Katunayake.

In March 2001, on the 50th anniversary of the Sri Lanka Air Force, the airfield was presented with the President's Colours.

On 4 December 1974, Martinair Flight 138, a Douglas DC-8 flew into the side of a mountain while on landing approach to Bandaranaike. The pilots had mistakenly assumed that a power station near a mountainous area, as an airport. All 191 passengers and crew on board were killed.[12]

On 15 November 1978, Icelandic Airlines Flight 001, a Douglas DC-8 on a charter flight, crashed into a coconut plantation while on approach to Katunayake, Sri Lanka for a refueling stop. 184 out of 264 people on board were killed.

24 March 2000 – An Antonov 12BK operated by cargo carrier Sky Cabs crashed due to lack of fuel. It crashed into two houses killing four people on the ground and six of the eight crew on board.[13]

24 July 2001 – Bandaranaike Airport attack. 14 members of the LTTE Black Tiger suicide squad infiltrated Katunayake air base, destroying eight military aircraft on the tarmac. They then moved to the civilian airport, destroying two Airbus aircraft and damaging three others. Seven government personnel were killed.[13]

4 February 2004 – An Ilyushin 18D cargo plane operated by Phoenix Aviation and charted to Sri Lankan cargo company Expo Aviation was landing in Colombo on a flight from Dubai. However, the copilot set the altimeter incorrectly and the landing gear contacted the surface of the sea, 10.7 km (6.6 mi) short of the runway. A belly landing was performed 50 m (160 ft) to the right of the runway.[13]

8 September 2005 – While a SaudiaBoeing 747taxied for takeoff on an international flight from Colombo to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, air traffic controllers received an anonymous telephone call concerning a possible bomb on the aircraft. The crew was informed about this call and elected to perform an emergency evacuation. As a result of the evacuation, there were 62 injuries among the 420 passengers and 22 crew members. One of the passengers died as a result of injuries received during the evacuation, and 17 passengers were hospitalized. No explosive devices were found after a search of the aircraft.[14]

25 March 2007 – At 00:45 the Tamil Tigers bombed the Sri Lanka Air Force base adjoining the international airport. Three Air Force personnel were killed and 16 injured when light aircraft dropped two bombs, although no aircraft were damaged. Passengers already on aircraft were disembarked and led to a shelter, while others trying to reach the airport were turned away and approach roads closed. The airport was temporarily shut down following the incident, but normal flights resumed at 03:30.[15]

On 6 January 2008, Mihin Lanka flight MJ401 from Colombo to Dubai was forced to issue a Mayday call and perform an emergency landing at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai after one engine developed a severe oil leak and stopped working. Passengers were informed that the incident was due to the plane leaving Bandaranaike International Airport, Colombo without a vital component in one engine. There were no casualties.[16]

On 9 April 2012, Mihin Lanka flight MJ603 from Colombo to Jakarta, called an emergency landing back to Bandaranaike International Airport, Katunayake after about 1 hour from take off, due to a suspected fire in the cargo hold. According to the engineers a fire had not erupted within the plane but was a technical fault. No casualties reported.[17]